Steam generator incorporating floating tube sheet



Nov. 26, 1968 N. D. ROMANOS STEAM GENERATOR INCORPORATING FLOATING TUBE SHEET 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 28, 1966 a v R 0 M T R NM 0 wm m. n D N VI B a o 6 8 34 l 7.

4 M I r 9 X 5 IN 2 Q 5 2 .l 4 E F Nov. 26, 1968 N. D. ROMANOS 3,412,713

51mm GENERATOR INCOPPORATING FLOATING TUBE SHEET Filed Sept. 28, 1966 4 Sheets-Sheei 2 INVENTOR 3 ND. ROMANOS B Wad 0.

ATTORNEY Nov. 26, 1968 N. D. ROMANOS STEAM GENERATOR INCORPORATING FLOATING TUBE SHEET 4 Sheets-Sheet Filed Sept. 28, 1966 FIG. 6

FIG. 5

INVENTOR N. D. ROMANOS BY Wad 4M ATTORNEY FIG. 4

NOV. 26, 1968 RQMANQS STEAM GENERATOR INCORPORATING FLOATING TUBE} SHEET 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Sept. 28, 1966 INVENTOR N. 0. ROMANOS ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,412,713 STEAM GENERATOR INCORPORATING FLOATING TUBE SHEET Nicholas D. Romanos, Chattanooga, Tenn., assignor to Combustion Engineering, Inc., Windsor, Conn., a corporation of Delaware Filed Sept. 28, 1966, Ser. No. 582,599 23 Claims. (Cl. 12234) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A shell and tube type vapor generator having provisions for evaporating and superheating within the same vessel. The arrangement includes annular vapor-liquid separator apparatus disposed about the inner surface of the vessel and in surrounding relation to the bundle of tubes therein intermediate the evaporation and superheating portions of the generator and arranged to occupy a minimum amount of vapor space. The tube bundle is of the floating tube sheet type and employs an enlarged central conduit, coextensive with the tube bundle, for supplying the tubes with heating fluid. The conduit is provided with means for supporting the tube sheets intermediate their peripheral edges in order to reduce the amount of tube sheet thickness required for withstanding stresses to which the tube sheets are subjected.

This invention relates generally to vapor generators of the shell and tube type wherein heating fluid in the form of a high temperature liquid or gas is caused to give up heat to liquid and/ or vapor in indirect heat transfer relation. More particularly, the present invention relates to novel vapor generating apparatus that is operative to produce superheated vapor with all of the process operations, including liquid preheating, evaporation and separation together with vapor superheating, being performed within a single vessel.

Vapor generators of the shell and tube type have long been recognized as an eflicient means for effecting the indirect transfer of heat from a high temperature fluid to a liquid in order to transform the latter into vapor. Utilization of such units has been found to be especially desirable where available space has been limited. Their use, however, has ordinarily been limited to installations operative to produce saturated vapor due to the fact that vapor generators of heretofore known designs have been incapable of producing acceptable amounts of superheated vapor without an inordinant increase in unit size and therefore a concomitant 'increase in expense. By means of the present invention there is provided a vapor generator of compact proportions that is operative to efliciently produce large amounts of superheated vapor. This is accomplished by providing a vertically elongated vessel arranged to operate with an upper vapor space and adapted to enclose a bundle of heating fluid-conducting tubes. Plate means, concentrically spaced from the wall of the vessel, surround the tube bundle in the lower portion of the unit to form an interior vapor generation chamber, where heat from the heating fluid tubes is transferred to a body of liquid, and an exterior downcomer passage that serves to recirculate liquid to the vapor generation chamber. The tubes of the tube bundle extend into the vapor space in the upper portion of the vessel and are disposed in heat exchange relation with vapor produced in the vapor generation chamber. Separator apparatus arranged to remove liquid from the vapor-liquid mixture produced in the vapor generation chamber and organized to occupy a minimum amount of vessel space is disposed in the fluid flow path between the vapor generation chamber and the vapor space. The separator apparatus Patented Nov. 26, 1968 is in the form of an annular ring that has a minimum lateral dimension such that it can conveniently be located exteriorly of the plate means that forms the downcomer passage and in substantial alignment with that passage, thereby eliminating the need for head room required to mount separators of conventional design within the vessel.

The unit size and therefore the cost of fabrication of the vapor generator of the present invention is further reduced by the provision of means for supporting the tube sheets which mount the large number of tubes that conduct heating fluid through the unit. In vapor generators of heretofore known design these members were, of necessity, constructed with considerable thickness in order that they could resist the great stresses to which they were subjected by the great difference in fluid pressure between the heating fluid on one side and the vaporizable fluid 0n the other. The present arrangement incorporates means for supporting these members intermediate their ends in order to reduce their unsupported span. With this reduction in unsupported span the strength of the tube sheets is greatly enhanced thereby permitting the use of members that are of significantly reduced thickness and concomitantly less expensive to manufacture. This means embodies a continuous, rigid fluid-conducting conduit means that extends the length of the tube bundle and whose ends are attached to the ends of the closure members that cooperate with the tube sheets to form the heating fluid inlet and outlet compartments. The tube sheets, in turn, are attached at their midpoints to the conduit thereby transferring much of the stresses to which they are subjected through the conduit to the walls of the vessel and reducing the requisite thickness of the members.

For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects obtained by its use, reference should be made to the accompanying drawings and description which relate to a preferred embodiment of the invention.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a vertical section of a vapor generator embodying the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a horizontal section taken along line 22 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a horizontal section taken along line 3-3 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a partial isometric representation of the separator apparatus according to the invention;

FIGURE 5 is a vertical section of the separator apparatus of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 6 is an elevational view of the top portion of the separator of FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 7 is an elevational view of a secondary separator cartridge according to the invention;

FIGURE 8 is a plan section of the separator cartridge of FIGURE 7;

FIGURE 9 is a partial horizontal section taken along line 99 of FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 10 is a partial horizontal section taken along line 10-10 of FIGURE 1.

Referring now to FIGURE 1, the vapor generating unit 11 comprises a vertically elongated pressure vessel 12 of circular cross section having a lower hemispherical head 14 and an upper dished head 16 closing the ends thereof. Access to the vessel interior is obtained through manhole openings 18 and 20 in the respective closure heads. Plate means, including a cylindrical plate 22, are concentrically spaced from the wall of the vessel 12 to form an interior vapor generation chamber 24 and an exterior, annular downcomer passage 26. As shown, the lower end of the cylindrical plate 22 is spaced from the bottom of the vapor generation chamber 24 so as to establish fluid communication between the chamber and the downcomer passage. The top of the vapor generation chamber is closed by means of a horizontally disposed plate 28 that is vertically spaced below the top of the vessel 12 so as to form a vapor space above the vapor generation chamber. A vapor outlet nozzle 32 is attached to the upper head 16 in communication with the vapor space 30 for conducting vapor generated in the unit to its point of use. Within the vessel 12 are disposed vertically elongated straight tubes 34 laterally supported by plates 35 that are adapted to conduct heating fluid, and which extend between lower and upper tube sheets 36 and 38 through the vapor generation chamber 24 and into the vapor space 30. The plates 35, as shown in FIG- URE 9, are provided with openings 37 to accommodate the passage of the tubes 34 and smaller openings 39 to accommodate the vertical flow of fluid therethrough. The lower tube sheet 36 is integrally connected with the wall of the vessel 12 and forms, in combination with the lower head 14, a heating fluid outlet chamber 40. A nozzle 42 is attached to the head 14 for conducting heating fluid from the chamber 40. The upper tube sheet 38 is vertically spaced from the lower tube sheet 36 and is of the floating type, having its outer peripheral edge spaced from the wall of the vessel 12. A dish-shaped wall section 44 is attached about the peripheral edge of the tube sheet 36 and cooperates therewith to form a heating fluid inlet chamber 46. Access to the chamber 46 is provided by a manhole opening in the wall section 44.

Axially disposed conduit means capable of conducting heating fluid extend between the heating fluid inlet and outlet chambers, 46 and 40, respectively. The conduit means is here shown as being constructed in three axially aligned sections, 50, 52 and 54. Section 50 is an elongated, rigid cylindrical member that extends through, and is enclosed by, the bundle of tubes 34 to connect at each of its ends with the opposed surfaces of the tube sheets 36 and 38. Openings 56 and 58 are provided in the respective tube sheets to accommodate passage of fluid therethrough. Section 52 is a cylindrical member of somewhat greater thickness than section 50 disposed within the heating fluid outlet chamber 40 and communicating with section 50 through opening 56 in tube sheet 36. The ends of the member are integrally secured between the lower surface of tube sheet 36 and the lower end closure 14 thereby providing vertical support about the midpoint of the tube sheet. The lower end of the member 52 terminates in an open nozzle 59 adapted to connect with a source of heating fluid for supplying heating fluid to the unit.- Section 54 is similarly a cylindrical member of greater thickness than section 50 and is disposed within the heating fluid inlet chamber 46 with its ends supportingly connected between the upper surface of the tube sheet and the curved wall section 44. Circumferentially spaced openings 60 are provided in the section 54 to establish fluid communication between the conduit means and chamber 46. Therefore, by means of the disclosed arrangement, the conduit means, which may alternatively be formed of a single member rather than as three sections as shown herein, serves to provide vertical support to the tube sheets about their axis thus reducing their unsupported lateral span. This reduction in unsupported span results in a'greatly reduced tube sheet thickness required to withstand the stresses to which the tube sheets are subjected and a concomitant reduction in tube sheet fabrication cost.

Vaporizable liquid is supplied to the unit by means of a plurality of arcuately formed feedwater conduits 62. These conduits have closed ends and are located, as shown, within the downcomer passage 26 adjacent the upper end thereof. Openings, provided along the lower surface of the conduits for discharging liquid into the passage 26, are such as to cause the incoming liquid to be discharged from the conduits 62 in spray form so as to expose a greater liquid surface area to the vapor present in the downcomer passage 26 above the liquid level therein. In this manner some of the vapor is condensed thereby serving to preheat the liquid as it enters the passage. Connection of the conduits 62 to a feedwater source is effected by means of nozzles 64 that penetrate the wall of the vessel 12 to connect with the conduits.

A vapor-liquid separating space, indicated as 66, is provided annularly about the wall of the vessel 12 radially outwardly from the tubes 34. Within the space 66 is disposed an annularly arranged separator apparatus 68 that is adapted to separate the liquid and vapor mixture produced in the vapor generation chamber 24 into its component parts. The separated liquid, together with a limited portion of vapor employed for liquid preheating, is discharged into the downcomer passage 26 and the major portion of separated vapor is passed into heat exchange relation with that portion of the tubes 34 located in the vapor space 30 where it is superheated before being passed through the vapor outlet nozzle 32. The separator apparatus 68, as shown in FIGURE 4, comprises an annular sheet metal casing that is attached to the wall of the vessel 12, as by means of brackets 70 and includes a top plate 72 and a vertically elongated front wall 74. The front wall 74 is provided with circumferentially spaced, vertically elongated inlet openings 76 that are adapted to communicate with the vapor generation chamber 24. The bottom of the casing is provided with a whirl chamber 78 formed by a toroidallyshaped wall surface 80. The Wall surface 80 contains, at its bottom, openings 82 that are sized to accommodate the discharge of liquid and a minor portion of vapor from the separator into the downcomer passage 26. Connecting the inlet openings 76 with the whirl chamber 78 are downwardly converging plate means 84 and 86 that form the opposed sides of circumferentially spaced passages 88 having a diminishing cross section so as to effect an increase in the velocity of the fluid that passes through the inlet openings 72 prior to its entering the whirl chamber 78. Intermediate each of the passages 88, and forming the side and rear walls respectively thereof, are upstanding plate means 90 and 92 which cooperate with the front wall 74 to form a vertically disposed vapor outlet duct 94. The lower ends of the ducts 94 open into the whirl chamber 78 while the tops thereof attach to the top plate 72 about openings provided therein to conduct vapor separated from the mixture upwardly into vapor outlet sections 98 formed above the top plate 78. As shown, the rear plates 92 are divergently opposed to the front walls 74 such that the ducts 94 have an upwardly increasing cross section that is effective to cause the vapor flowing therethrough to undergo a reduction in velocity and a concomitant increase in pressure before entering the vapor outlet sections 98.

The plate 84 that forms the rear walls of the passages 88 is conically disposed between the top of the front wall 74 adjacent the upper ends of the inlet opening 76 and the rear edge of the toroidal wall surface 80 to which it is attached in tangential relation. The plate 84 is provided with spaced openings that accommodate passage of the ducts 94. The lower passage plates 86 are weldedly connected between the front wall 74 adjacent the lower ends of the inlet openings 76 and an annular reinforcing rod or tube 100 that extends axially through the whirl chamber 78.

The vapor outlet sections 98 of the separator apparatus are formed above the top plate 72 around the openings 96 by means of upstanding front and rear bracket members 104 and 106 that are attached to the upper surface of the top plate and connected at their top by a cover plate 108. The lower ends of the brackets 104 and 106 are interconnected by relatively short, upstanding side plates 110 that are divergently disposed from the inner to the outer edge of the top plate 72 so as to form with the front and rear bracket members a vapor outlet section 98 of trapezoidal cross section. The sides of the vapor outlet section 98 are closed by removable vapor drier cartridges 112 that are retained in position by channels 114 formed in the cover plate 108 and shoulders 116 in the side plates 110. The drier cartridges serve to remove any moisture retained in the vapor outlet sections 98. In the preferred embodiment, as shown in FIG- URES 7 and 8, the drier cartridges 112 comprise a frame 118 that surrounds and encloses the ends of a plurality of closely spaced, vertically disposed corrugated strips 12.0 that form undulating passes through which the vapor must flow in leaving the outlet sections 98 and by which moisture is removed from the vapor in a known manner. As an alternative, the corrugated strips 120 can be replaced by fine mesh screen material which is also effective to remove moisture from vapor.

The liquid that is removed by the drier cartridges flows from the bottom thereof into a liquid collection trough 122 formed along the inner peripheral edge of the top plate 72 by a continuous annular angle member 124. Liquid collected in the trough 122 is removed therefrom by flowing to the outer peripheral edge of the top plate 72 which, is shown in FIGURES 3 and 5, is slightly spaced from the wall of the vessel. From the edge of the plate 72 the liquid cascades downwardly to an annular liquid drain trough 126 (FIGURE 5) formed by plates 128 and 130 that attach to the vessel wall and to the lower end of the separator. Circumferentially spaced liquid discharge tubes 132 open at their upper end into the drain trough 126 and serve to discharge liquid collected therein down below the liquid level in the downcomer passage 26. By means of this arrangement wet vapor being discharged from the openings 82 in the Whirl chamber 78 is prevented from bypassing the vapor drier cartridge 112 and being discharged into the vapor space 30 while still bearing a significant amount of liquid.

As shown in FIGURE 3, the trapezoidal arrange-ment of the sides of adjacent vapor outlet sections 98 form radially inwardly divergent passes 134 that open into the vapor space 30. Moisture-free vapor emerging from the drier cartridges 112 is directed through the vapor passes 134 into heat exchange relation with the upper ends of the tubes 34 that occupy the vapor space 30. Baffle plates 136 attach to the tubes 34 and serve to direct the flow of vapor back and forth across the tubes whereby it becomes superheated before passing to the vapor outlet nozzle 32.

During the operation of the unit a heated fluid, such as petroleum, liquid metal, water or gas enters the vapor generator 11 through the inlet nozzle 56 and flows upwardly through the cylindrical conduit 50 into the heating fluid inlet chamber 46 from whence it is distributed through the tubes 34 where it gives up heat before being discharged into the outlet chamber 40 and out the nozzle 42. At the same time vaporizable liquid enters the unit through feedwater nozzles 64 and is sprayed into the space above the liquid level in downcomer passage 26. Here the liquid comes in contact with the limited amount of vapor that enters the space with the liquid discharge from openings 82 of the separator apparatus and is preheated by condensing the vapor. The heated liquid thence passes to the liquid body contained in the passage 26. Due to the dilference in density between the liquid in the downcomer passage 26 and the liquid-vapor mixture in the vapor generation chamber 24 the liquid is caused to flow downwardly in the former and upwardly in the latter thereby establishing fluid circulation within the unit. As the liquid flows in heat exchange relation with the tubes 34 some of it is transformed into vapor and the resulting mixture flows radially out of the upper end of the vapor generation chamber 24 into the separator apparatus 68 through the inlet openings 70. The quality of the liquid-vapor mixture produced in the chamber 24 and passed to the separator inlet openings 70 can be adjusted by controlling the admission of feedwater to the unit which thereby alters the liquid level in the downcomer passage 26 and in the vapor generation chamber 24. Within the separator apparatus the mixture is directed inwardly through the inlet passages 88 where its velocity is increased before being discharged into the whirl chamber 78. In the whirl chamber the heavier liquid particles are flung by centrifugal action outwardly against the toroidal wall surface and discharged out of the openings 82 into the downcomer passage 26 where it is mixed with the incoming feedwater. The vapor leaving the whirl chamber 78 passes upwardly through the ducts 94 where its velocity is reduced and pressure restored. It then passes into the vapor outlet sections 98 and through the drier cartridges 112 into the vapor passes 134. From the passes 134 the dried vapor flows radially inwardly into the vapor space 30 and across the tubes 34 where it extracts heat from the tubes. The amount of heat extracted from the tubes, and thereby the degree of superheat to be imparted to the vapor, is dependent upon the temperature of the heating fluid and the amount of heating surface provided in the space 30. Thus, units of the present design capable of imparting greater or less degrees of superheat to the vapor produced in the vapor generation chamber 24 can be constructed with a minimum amount of change in basic configuration. Such change merely requiring an adjustment of the length of tubes 34 exposed in the vapor space 30.

By combining within a single vessel means for preheating the vaporizable liquid, means for evaporating the liquid, mechanical separating apparatus, and means for superheating the vapor, a most compact unit has been provided which has many advantages over the apparatus heretofore known in the art. Firstly, the over-all size of the apparatus is reduced thereby reducing the amount of space necessary to accommodate the unit. Secondly, the total cost of the unit is reduced since the need for separate container vessels for the individual components is elimieliminated. Thirdly, the need for connecting piping between components is eliminated, thus reducing the cost of the unit still further. Fourthly, the same basic design can be altered to produce greater or less degrees of superheat merely by changing the length of tubes exposed in the vapor space. Still another advantage is the effective utilization of vessel space by means of the hereindisclosed novel separator apparatus having a configuration that permits its occupying a minimum amount of space with no attendant sacrifice of separation efficiency. Also, by supporting the tube sheets in the manner disclosed a material reduction in required tube sheet thickness and fabrication cost is realized.

It will be understood that various changes in the details, materials, and arrangements of parts which have been herein described and illustrated in order to explain the nature of the invention, may be made by those skilled in the art within the principle and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. Vapor-liquid separator apparatus for removing liquid from a vapor-liquid mixture comprising: an elongated casing, vapor-liquid mixture inlet means in at least one wall of said casing, said casing including arcuate plate means forming a whirl chamber spaced from said inlet means, means forming an opening in said arcuate plate for the discharge of liquid from said Whirl chamber, first passage means connecting said inlet means and said whirl chamber, said passage means including means for discharging high velocity mixture into said whirl chamber in tangential relation to the wall thereof whereby liquid is centrifugally separated therefrom, vertically elongated second passage means substantially coextensive with said casing for conducting separated vapor upwardly from said whirl chamber, and vapor outlet means from said vapor duct means.

2. Vapor generating apparatus comprising a vertically elongated vessel arranged to operate with an upper vapor space; head means closing at least one end of said vessel; an outlet from said vapor space; a bundle of fluid-conducting tubes substantially filling the transverse area of said vessel; plate means concentrically spaced from the wall of said vessel and surrounding said tube bundle to form an interior vapor generation chamber .and an exterior downcomer passage; a first tube sheet connecting one end of said tubes located within said vessel integrally attached to the wall thereof and cooperating with said head means to form a first heating fluid chamber; a second tube sheet connecting the other end of said tubes located Within said vessel in axially spaced relation from said first tube sheet and having its outer peripheral edge concentrically spaced from the wall of said vessel; a curved wall section attached to said second tube sheet to form a second heating fluid chamber; means for circulating heating fluid through said chambers and tubes including axially disposed straight conduit means extending between and having its opposite ends attached to said head means and said curved wall section, said axially disposed conduit means being further attached at spaced locations intermediate its ends to said first .and second tube sheets respectively, means forming openings in said conduit means for establishing fluid communication between the interior thereof and said second heating fluid chamber; first nozzle means attached to said head means in com munication with the adjacent end of said conduit means; second nozzle means attached to said head means in communication with said first heating fluid chamber; and means for supplying vaporizable liquid to said vapor generation chamber.

3. Vapor generating apparatus as recited in claim 2 wherein said heating fluid flows from said first nozzle means, through said conduit means to said second heating fluid chamber and thence through said tubes to said first heating fluid chamber to be discharged from said second nozzle means.

4. Vapor generating apparatus as recited in claim 3 wherein said first tube sheet is disposed below said vapor generation chamber and said second tube sheet is disposed thereabove is said vapor space.

5. Vapor generating apparatus as recited in claim 4 including vapor-liquid separator means annularly disposed about the Wall of said vessel exterior of said vapor generation chamber and intermediate said downcomer passage and said vapor space, said separator means including means for discharging separated liquid to said downcomer passage; and means for discharging separated vapor to said vapor space.

6. Vapor generating apparatus as recited in claim 5 wherein said vapor-liquid separator means comprise an annular casing having a vertically elongated front wall disposed about the wall of said vessel exterior of said vapor generation chamber and intermediate said downcomer passage and said vapor space, ,a plurality of horizontally spaced, vertically extending slots forming mixture inlet openings in said front Wall communicating with said vapor generation chamber, a generally toroidal surface closing the bottom of said casing and defining a horizontally disposed annular whirl chamber spaced below said openings, first passage means connecting said open ings and said whirl chamber in fluid communication including downwardly convergent plate means disposed in tangential relation with the wall of said whirl chamber, opening means in said toroidal surface for discharging separated liquid from said whirl chamber into said do'wncomer passage, and second passage means substantially vertically coextensive with said casing alternately spaced with respect to said passage means and communicating with the top of said whirl chamber for conducting separated vapor upwardly therefrom.

7. Vapor generating apparatus as recited in claim 6 including secondary separator means disposed at the u per end of said ducts comprising rows of spaced, vertically extending, substantially parallel corrugated plates.

8. Vapor generating apparatus as recited in claim 7 wherein said ducts have a larger flow area than that of said passage means whereby the velocity of the vapor flowing through said ducts is reduced and its pressure increased.

9. Vapor generating apparatus as recited in claim 6 wherein said casing includes a top plate extending from the upper end of said front wall to close the top of said casing, a plurality of circumferentially spaced openings in said top plate for the upward discharge of vapor from said second passage means and wherein said first and second passage means .are formed by a plurality of circumferentially spaced, vertical plates attached to the front wall of said casing and extending between said toroidal surface and said top plate to divide said casing into a plurality of alternating first and second passages.

10. Vapor generating apparatus as recited in claim 9 wherein said first passages each include opposed plates forming the front .and rear sides forming the front and rear sides thereof extending between opposed sides of said partitions to close said passages, said plates being downwardly convergent between said front wall and said whirl chamber.

11. Vapor generating apparatus as recited in claim 10 wherein said second passages each include a rear plate extending between opposed sides of said partitions to close said passages, said rear plates being upwardly divergent with respect to said front wall.

12. Vapor generating apparatus as recited in claim 9 including horizontally disposed baffle means disposed intermediate the ends of said fluid conducting tubes and in substantially coplanar relation with the top plate of said casing to isolate said vapor generation chamber from said vapor space, the bottom surface of said baflle means being operative to direct vapor-liquid mixture from said vapor generation chamber to the mixture inlet openings of said casing and the upper surface of said baflie means being operative to direct vapor from said separating apparatus in heat exchange relation with said heating fluid tubes in said vapor space whereby said vapor is superheated.

13. Vapor generating apparatus as recited in claim 9 including secondary separator means comprising means mounted upon said top plate about said top plate openings defining a vapor collection chamber, the walls of said vapor collection chamber including contact drier means through which vapor must pass in flowing from said chamber.

14. Vapor-liquid separator apparatus for removing liquidfrom a vapor-liquid mixture comprising: an elongated casing having a vertically elongated front wall; slot means forming mixture inlet opening means in said front wall for passing vapor-liquid mixture to the interior of said casing; said casing including an arcuate plate subjacent said front wall and forming a whirl chamber spaced from said inlet opening means, the inner surface of said arcuate plate being in facing relation to said inlet opening means; means forming a first passage means within said casing connecting said inlet opening means and said whirl chamber, said means including downwardly convergent walls operative to increase the velocity of the fluid mixture flowing through said passage means, said passage means opening to said whirl chamber in substantially tangential relation to the inner surface of said arcuate plate whereby liquid is separated from said fluid mixture by centrifugal action; means forming openings in said arcuate plate for discharge of separated liquid from said whirl chamber; means forming second passage means within said casing communicating with said whirl chamber in laterally spaced relation from the communicating end of said first passage means for discharge of separated vapor from said whirl chamber.

15. Vapor-liquid separating apparatus as recited in claim 14 wherein said casing includes a top plate extending from the upper end of said front wall to close the top of said casing and wherein said second passage means comprise vertically elongated walls extending between and connecting said arcuate plate and said top plate, and means forming openings in said top plate for the upward discharge of vapor from said second passage means.

16. Vapor-liquid separating apparatus as recited in claim 14 wherein said second passage means includes upwardly divergent walls to reduce the velocity of vapor flowing therethrough.

17. Vapor-liquid separating apparatus as recited in claim 14 wherein said casing includes a top plate extending rearwardly from the upper end of said front wall to close the top of said casing, a plurality of spaced openings in said top plate for the upward discharge of vapor from said second passage means and wherein said first passage means and said second passage means are formed by a plurality of laterally spaced, vertical plates attached to the front wall of said casing and extending between the bottom of said casing to said top plate to laterally divide said casing into a plurality of alternating first and second passages.

18. Vapor-liquid separating apparatus as recited in claim 17 wherein said first passages each include opposite plates forming the front and rear sides thereof extending laterally between opposed sides of said partitions to close said passages, said plates being inclinedly disposed and mutually downwardly convergent from the front wall of said casing.

19. Vapor-liquid separating apparatus as recited in claim 18 wherein said second passages each include a rear plate extending laterally between opposed sides of said partition to close said passages in cooperation with the front wall of said casing, each of said rear plates being inclinedly disposed in upwardly divergent relation with respect to said front wall.

20. Vapor-liquid separating apparatus as recited in claim 17 including secondary separator means mounted upon said top plate in fluid communication with each of top plate openings, said secondary separator means including means mounted to said top plate externally of said casing about said top plate openings defining a vapor collection chamber, the Walls of said vapor collection chamber including contact driver means through which vapor must pass in flowing from said chamber.

21. Vapor-liquid separating apparatus as recited in claim 20 wherein said contact drier means comprise removable drier cartridges disposed on opposed sides of said vapor collection chamber.

22. Vapor-liquid separating apparatus as recited in claim 21 wherein said drier cartridges include a row of closely spaced, vertically extending corrguated plates.

23. Vapor-liquid separating apparatus as recited in claim 14 wherein said casing comprises a plurality of annularly arranged, arcuate segments.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,922,404 1/1960 Kopp et al 122-34 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,216,968 12/1959 'France. 1,349,104 12/ 1963 France.

992,298 5/ 1965 Great Britain.

CHARLES J. MYHRE, Primary Examiner. 

